–President Obama, House Speaker Boehner Expected To Talk Over Weekend
–Obama, Boehner Expected To Explore ‘Grand’ Deal, Back Up Debt Options
–Boehner Tells House Republicans He Wants House Vote Next Wednesday
–Treasury’s Geithner To Appear On Two Sunday Talk Shows

By John Shaw

WASHINGTON (MNI) – With temperatures this weekend in Washington
expected to exceed 100 degrees, it seems unlikely that President Obama
and House Speaker John Boehner will be getting together on the golf
course Saturday or Sunday.

But the President and Speaker are expected to be in close touch
this weekend, either in person or on the phone, as they try to assemble
a package to increase the statutory debt ceiling and cut budget
deficits.

The centrality of the Obama-Boehner duo to rescue the debt ceiling
impasse was confirmed Friday by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid who,
either in a moment of brutal honesty or weary exasperation, said that he
is not a central player in the fiscal drama.

In remarks on the Senate floor Friday, Reid said he and Senate
Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are not even a part of the talks to
reach a budget deal.

“I haven’t been in the day-to-day negotiations,” Reid said.

“I wish them both very well,” Reid said of Obama and Boehner.

Reid said the president and the speaker are negotiating a package
that includes both spending cuts and revenue increases. Boehner has said
repeatedly that he opposes adding tax increases into a deficit reduction
package.

Reid’s statement shifting the responsibility for crafting a budget
agreement to Obama and Boehner may have come as a surprise to the
Speaker.

About an hour before Reid designated the President and the Speaker
as the key negotiators, Boehner denied to reporters that he and Obama
were near an agreement this week on deficit reduction plan–or even were
trying to negotiate an agreement.

“There was no agreement, publicly, privately, never an agreement
and frankly, not close to an agreement,” Boehner said, referring to a
flurry of reports Thursday that an Obama-Boehner budget accord was near.

“And so I would suggest that it will be a hot weekend here in
Washington, D.C.,” Boehner said.

He repeated this view that an agreement must confront “two
challenges”: increasing the debt ceiling and cutting spending.

“I’ve been pretty clear all year that we would not increase the
debt limit without serious cuts in spending and serious changes to the
way we spend the American people’s money,” Boehner said.

“And I’ll just assure you that whatever comes to the floor will
meet that test,” he added.

Boehner met with House Republicans Friday morning and told them
that he expects the House to vote on some kind of debt ceiling package
and deficit reduction package next Wednesday.

Given Boehner’s assurances that all House members will have 72
hours to review legislation before voting on it, it seems likely that
any agreement would be announced Sunday night or Monday morning.

Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner is scheduled to appear on both ABC
News’ and Fox News’ Sunday morning talk shows and could give some signal
about how the talks are going.

Boehner and Obama have reportedly discussed a $3 trillion deficit
reduction package, but some lawmakers have said a spending cut and debt
hike package of $1.5 trillion could be a back-up option.

This would allow the U.S. to get past the August 2nd deadline and
allow lawmakers and administration time to consider a larger package
later this year, perhaps based on the work of the “Gang of Six” or other
fiscal groups.

The “Gang Of Six” is a group of three Democratic and three
Republican senators who developed a plan that would cut deficits by
$3.75 trillion over a decade. Their plan would include large savings
from entitlement programs and increase revenues by about $1.2 trillion.

The U.S. has already reached its $14.29 trillion debt ceiling.
Geithner has said that Congress must pass legislation increasing the
debt ceiling by August 2.

** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **

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